Science in Transition reports progress since nov 2013

Science in Transition reports progress and status since November 2013 in the report that is now available in English. Download the pdf here. “Science in Transition is not yet finished.”

The status report presents an overview of progress and debate since November 2013 when the initiative was launched. It also describes future plans. “We will continue to contribute to the debate in a variety of ways. We will continue to collect suggestions for changes to the scientific system and to bring those suggestions to the attention of administrators and policymakers. Together with knowledge institutions we aim to organise meetings in which ideas for solutions will be exchanged. We hope to create dialogue with university staff and with groups of stakeholders, interest groups and the public. We hope that it will give impetus for experiments relating to the evaluation and management of science and focused on improving quality and achieving greater impact of scientific research.”

In the report an overview of the current debate is presented, for example about publication pressure. “It is a broadly shared observation that publications appear to have become more important to scientists yet are of lesser importance for science, although it is clear that the culture differs in each discipline. The publication pressure is experienced most in the sciences and social sciences – some people even talk of hyper-competition – but the dynamics are different in the humanities. Various institutions are attempting to address the publication pressure by placing greater emphasis on the quality rather than the quantity of scientific results, e.g. during job evaluations with professors. However, a broadly supported approach to this is still lacking.”

Many elements from the Science in Transition analysis have received praise, but the follow-up in terms of policy is mixed. “There also appears to be consensus about the quality of university education: it is under pressure. […] This problem has been identified and various universities do have initiatives that are aimed at offering career prospects to education specialists, but these are not structural solutions.”